BOX SCORE
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Capital men's soccer team played host to the largest crowd in program history Tuesday, but fell to #15 Ohio Wesleyan, 3-0 in the season opener for both clubs.
Backed by a Bernlohr Stadium soccer record crowd of 683 fans, the Crusaders played even with the Battling Bishops for nearly the entire first half. Capital nearly broke through in the 30th minute when senior Mike Gregory (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville South HS) blasted a shot from the top of the box that went just over the right corner of the goal.
OWU finally got on the board in the 44th minute when Sam Striller pounded home a rebound from the right side of the box to give the visitors a 1-0 lead at the intermission.
After holding a slim, 10-7 lead in shots during the first 45 minutes of action, Ohio Wesleyan turned up the offensive pressure in the second half. The Bishops outshot the Crusaders 12-3 after halftime and scored goals in the 71st and 82nd minutes to put the game out of reach.
Richard Ott made two saves to earn the shutout for OWU while sophomore Justin Bultman (Maineville, Ohio/Kings Mills HS) made eight stops in goal for CU.
Capital returns to action this weekend as they make a trip to the East Coast to take part in the Elmer Lord Invitational. CU takes on host Salisbury State on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Crusaders will then face St. Mary's (Md.) on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.